Multi-criteria environmental assessment validation dataset

The MCA field validation data were collected in April 2024 from two wildfire-affected areas in the province of Avila, central Spain. The first wildfire occurred in August 2021 in the Sierra de la Paramera, and the second fire ignited in August 2022 near Santa Cruz del Valle. Field measurements were conducted at 11 sites in Paramera and 13 sites in Santa Cruz, with each site defined as a 10-m radius circular plot. Vegetation cover was estimated based on a reference chart (Prodon and Lebreton, 1981). Human or animal impacts within these sites were categorized into soil compaction (i.e., machinery, logging), overgrazing, or no observable impact. Observed erosion types were recorded and scored from 0 to 1 based on erosion severity, and the highest value per plot was retained. Vegetation recovery was quantified by combining shrub and grass cover estimations, weighted by their average heights: 120 cm for shrub and 10 cm for grass strata. Observations on standing trees were omitted to focus on early-successional vegetation, detectable 2–3 years after a fire